Thank You for the Constant Support

For Teacher Appreciation Week, we asked students from all grade bands to share words of appreciation for their teachers. Today, we hear from 5th graders.

We heard appreciations from a lot of 5th graders, as they prepare to move on to middle school. Below are three different letters, reflecting on the things they will miss most about their 5th grade teachers.

Some students focused on the fun:

Students in Ms. Lane’s 5th grade class at Piney Branch Elementary including me, love her for all sorts of reasons. I asked a few other kids in my class what they like about her. Tyra and Owen said, “I like how she teaches.” Then when I asked Naomi (she is the other Naomi) she said, “She solves conflicts.” Lastly, When I asked Nate he replied with, “Snack Attacks.” That is when if our class is working really hard on projects and we have left over candy, Oreos, and stuff like that, she will give some to each of us and we get to eat while we work. What I like about her is that she is always helpful and encouraging. Also, she can be strict but she is also SUPER nice and SUPER fun! We love Ms. Lane!

--Naomi, Washington, D.C.

Others focused on how they're teachers never gave up on them:

Dear Mrs. Davenport,

You have been a great teacher this school year. You have taught me a variety of different things
from life skills to academic skills. You have brought your job to the next level by not just teaching the
minimum but a lot closer to the maximum (if not THE maximum).

You are tremendously encouraging with everything that you do from having the endurance to
have taught elementary school students for 17 years (and however more you teach) to not giving up on
us when we don't necessarily understand a certain subject. You always have a "growth" mindset and
always encourage us to have one too. Pretty much nobody (including me) gets the subject at first when
it is introduced whether it is measuring volume in shapes, methods to solving long division and
multiplication problems, physical and chemical properties, etc. All of those I did not completely know at
first but you still do not give up, and I believe that you will never give up any time in your teaching
career.

Now you are sending your class of 2016-2017 off to middle school as you have been for years. I
know you have made an impact on me and I also know you have made an impact on others. I feel happy
and sad at the same time about going to middle school, but one thing that makes me sad is leaving your
classroom and my whole elementary school. I will never forget you and the impact you made on my life,
THANK YOU!

Sincerely,
Jack

--Jack, Tennessee

And the constant support of an excellent teacher was a common theme:

I love my teacher, Brandy Ray, because she supports me and my peers at any time she can. She does this by believing in us, giving us lots of time to work, and helping us understand the unit(s) better. We just went through lots of stress because of a really big capstone project for 5th grade. During this project, Mrs. Ray supported us through it all. She let us express our creativity, guided us, and helped us manage our emotions.

Mrs. Ray believes in my classmates and me. Not only that, she encourages our learning by letting us inquire about anything, lets us guide our learning as much as possible, and she encourages numerous amounts of hands-on participation to help us understand concepts better. Also not only does she support us academically, but she helps us socially and emotionally, making us better people.

I cherish being under her direction because she guides me gently when I need to learn something and she celebrates my success when I do well. Furthermore, because of this process, she has helped me increase my confidence in myself as a learner and as a person. She understands everything and helps us in innumerable ways.

I am so lucky to have her as my teacher. She is the best. I don't know that I can thank her enough, but I want to in every way imaginable.